Freeper Canteen ~ Sunday Chapel Thread ~ A MESSAGE FROM MOM ~ September 28, 2008

The Canteen Crew ^ | 9-27-08 | Serving the Best Troops & Vets in the WORLD!!!

[Brad’s Gramma]

 

 

 

 

 

A MESSAGE FROM MOM

I gave you life, but cannot live it for you.
I can teach you things, but I cannot make you learn.
I can give you directions, but I cannot be there to lead you.
I can allow you freedom, but I cannot account for it.
I can take you to church, but I cannot make you believe.
I can teach you right from wrong, but I cannot always decide for you.
I can buy you beautiful clothes, but I cannot make you beautiful inside.
I can offer you advice, but I cannot accept it for you.
I can give you love, but I cannot force it upon you.
I can teach you to share, but I cannot make you unselfish.
I can teach you respect, but I cannot force you to show honor.
I can advise you about friends, but cannot choose them for you.
I can advise you about sex, but I cannot keep you pure.
I can tell you the facts of life, but I can't build your reputation.
I can tell you about drink, but I can't say "no" for you.
I can warn you about drugs but I can't prevent you from using them.
I can tell you about lofty goals, but I can't achieve them for you.
I can teach you about kindness, but I can't force you to be gracious.
I can warn you about sins, but I cannot make you moral.
I can love you as a child, but I cannot place you in God's family.
I can pray for you, but I cannot make you walk with God.
I can teach you about Jesus, but I cannot make Jesus your Lord.
I can tell you how to live, but I cannot give you eternal life.
I can love you with unconditional love all of my life...and I will!!! -- Mom

The author of this little piece is listed as "anonymous" on the copy I have before me. The author's background, circumstances, intended audience and motive are unknown -- at least to me. It's powerfully written, but I suspect it will impact each of us differently, depending on our own PERSONAL history and circumstances. One thing I do know from many years as a pastor and chaplain. Many of you who read this won't be able to identify with such lofty words. You didn't have a mom like that. And you may not be that sort of parent yourself. Still, there is a message here for all of us. Even in spite of human frailty.

The good news from scripture (at least in the Christian tradition) is that ALL of us already have that kind of loving parent... though some of us may not know or accept it yet. We have God as our Father! And I even remember hearing at least one sermon on "The Motherhood of God!" It wasn't delivered by some radical feminist trying to rewrite Christian theology, but by a very conservative seminary professor. And he based it on a passage from Deuteronomy 32:11 which describes an eagle "hovering" over its young. The professor's point was that God has all the attributes of a good mother as well as of a good father. The psalmist affirmed that as he wrote, "When my father and my mother forsake me, then God will take care of me." (Psalm 27:11)

God doesn't force belief, but, like the mom in that message, gives us the freedom to choose. Even when we reject faith, blame Him for everything wrong in our lives, and hurt His other children, He never gives up on us. And His letters to us are pretty extensive. Hopefully, we will all get THAT message, even if we never have an earthly mom (or dad) like the one in the letter above.

CAPT J. David Atwater, CHC, USN

 

[Brad’s Gramma]

Bush Proclaims Sept. 28 Gold Star Mother's Day

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25, 2008 – President Bush has proclaimed Sept. 28 as Gold Star Mother's Day this year. The day honors the mothers of men and women who were killed in the line of duty while serving the nation in the armed forces.

Congress designated the last Sunday in September as "Gold Star Mother's Day" in 1936, authorizing and requesting the president to issue a proclamation in its observance each year.

"Throughout our history, the men and women of the armed forces have put our nation's security before their own, doing their duty in the face of grave danger," Bush wrote in the proclamation issued by the White House yesterday. "On Gold Star Mother's Day, we pay solemn tribute to the mothers of the patriots lost serving this great nation."

The term Gold Star Mother comes from World War I. In that war, families with someone in the services placed a blue star in the window of their homes. If the servicemember died on active duty, they replaced the blue star with a gold one, indicating the sacrifice.

In 1929, a group of women who had lost sons or daughters in the Great War formed the American Gold Star Mothers in Washington, D.C. The group now includes mothers "whose sons and daughters served and died in the line of duty in the armed forces of the United States of America or its allies, or died as a result of injuries sustained in such service," according to their charter.

"Gold Star Mothers inspire our nation with their deep devotion to family and country," Bush wrote. "These extraordinary women serve their communities, dedicate their time to helping members of our armed forces and veterans, and bring comfort and hope to families whose loved ones laid down their lives in the defense of our liberty. Nothing can compensate for their sacrifice and loss, yet Gold Star Mothers demonstrate tremendous courage and resolve while working to preserve the memory and legacy of all our fallen heroes."

Bush asked for God's blessings on these Gold Star families and called on all Americans to fly the U.S. flag on this special day. "I also encourage the American people to display the flag and hold appropriate ceremonies as a public expression of our nation's sympathy and respect for our Gold Star Mothers," he wrote.

Link to the above

Thank you to all of the Gold Star Moms (and WIVES) who have lost their loved ones in service to this country. Our prayers are with you today and every day.

[Melinda]

Thanks for sharing this.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Please join us for Sunday Chapel and Liberty

Please stop in and say a prayer of protection for the military.
Prayers from all denominations are needed.

           


Sunday Liberty starts after the Guest Military Chaplain's Service!

[BykrBayb]

Hi

[ALOHA RONNIE]

.

Gov. SCHWARZENEGGER has just followed suit:

http://gov.ca.gov/press-release/10630/

.

[ConorMacNessa]

GOD BLESS AND PROTECT OUR TROOPS!

---

Amazing Grace

by John Newton

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
.
’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, .
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!
.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.
.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, Who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.

[blackie]

God Bless our troops!!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good Lord’s Day to you, Melinda, and welcome to the Canteen.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Wishing all our Jewish troops, veterans, families, allies, friends, and Canteeners
a peaceful and prosperous week.

[Kathy in Alaska]

He Who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - may He bless the fighters of the Israel Defense Force, who stand guard over our land and the cities of our G-d from the border of the Lebanon to the desert of Egypt, and from the Great Sea unto the approach of the Aravah, on the land, in the air, and on the sea.

May HASHEM cause the enemies who rise up against us to be struck down before them. May the Holy One, Blessed is He, preserve and rescue our fighting men from every trouble and distress and from every plague and illness, and may He send blessing and success in their every endeavor.

May He lead our enemies under their sway and may He grant them salvation and crown them with victory. And may there be fulfilled for them the verse: For it is Hashem, your G-d, Who goes with you to battle your enemies for you to save you.

G-d bless and keep your children safe, Alouette.

[Tanniker Smith]

Evening, all. Happy Sunday.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Prayers for our troops, veterans, families, allies, friends, and Canteeners
for a safe and peaceful week ahead.

[HopeandGlory]

Good morning Troops, Veterans and Canteeners.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Our Flag Flying Proudly One Nation Under God

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Lord, Please Bless Our Troops they're fighting for our Freedom.

Prayers going up.

[The Mayor]

Freep mail me to be on or off the Daily Bread ping list

September 28, 2008

Showing Up

ODB RADIO: Listen Now |  Download
READ: Psalm 116

Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live. —Psalm 116:2

Leonardo da Vinci spent 10 years drawing ears, elbows, hands, and other parts of the body in many different aspects. Then one day he set aside the exercises and painted what he saw. Likewise, athletes and musicians never become great without regular practice.

For years I resisted a regular routine of prayer, believing that communication with God should be spontaneous and free. But I found that I needed the discipline of regularity to make possible those exceptional times of free communication with God. Eventually I learned that spontaneity often flows from discipline.

The writer Nancy Mairs says she attends church in the same spirit she goes to her desk every morning to write, so that if an idea comes she’ll be there to receive it. I approach prayer the same way. I keep on whether it feels like I am profiting or not. I show up in hopes of getting to know God better, perhaps hearing from Him in ways accessible only through solitude.

The English word meditate derives from a Latin word that means “to rehearse.” Often my prayers seem like a kind of rehearsal. I go over basic notes (the Lord’s Prayer), practice familiar pieces (the Psalms), and try out a few new tunes. Mainly, I show up.

Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant’s lips can try;
Prayer the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high. —Montgomery

Prayer is an intimate conversation with our God.

Bible in One Year: Psalms 114–116

[SandRat]

In.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good Lord’s Day BykrBayb without an e. You far enough away from Hurricane Kyle to miss his rain?

[AZ .44 MAG]

On this date (it’s still 9-27-2008 here) in 1974 I enlisted for 4 years active/2 years inactive with the United States Marine Corps. It was the best and most honorable thing I’ve ever done and I was an Eagle Scout before that. I never fought in a battle or saved any of my fellow Marines from certain death or did anything else of note.

What I’m trying to now is influence my friends and family to vote for candidates that will honor the sacrifice of others that did MUCH more than I did. And let the men and women fighting now come home with victory on their chests and the acclaim of their fellow citizens for a job well done.

I will pray for this tomorrow morning in church. I hope all of you will too.

[MeekMom]

Evening folks! Hope your weekend is going well! :)

[Kathy in Alaska]

To our Military -

Thank you for protecting us. Sleep well and safe.
May you be protected. May your families' hearts be at ease.

Thank you to our Allies.

**********************************

To those of our Military and Allies who gave their all,
- May your souls rest in peace. May your families be comforted.
May your/our country always remember.